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Grateful, thankful, blessed.
You may have a cute little sign on your mantel, wall, or TV stand that says one or all of those words. Even if you don’t, have you ever stopped and thought about what you’re grateful for?
What are you thankful for? What makes you feel blessed? Sometimes we get caught up going through our day-to-day activities we forget to reflect on what makes us happy.
I hosted an interview once, and a statement was made that people get so caught up in their own day that they forget about those are around them. We are in our own movie, and those around us are just the “extras” or background actors. I know that I’m very guilty of this. Most often when I’m walking through the store. I will be strolling from one aisle to the next, and I don’t even realize the individuals, couples and families I walk past. I look towards my list; watermelon. I head towards the watermelon, and along the way I don’t notice the little girl begging to take an apple home or the couple looking at a cake for a mother’s birthday. Just like I don’t notice these events, I don’t take a moment to reflect on myself. All I’m focused on is grabbing the watermelon, heading to the checkouts, and getting home to make dinner.
What am I thankful for? That watermelon?
Paper chains are an easier craft for all ages and they can be festive for all occasions. To make it more special for the holiday season, you can create a “paper chain of thanks”. Sometimes people forget to step back from reality and reflect on where we’re thankful for, so a “chain of thanks” can be a fun activity to do so.
During the 2021 Breakfast with Santa event, community members in Omro took the opportunity to reflect on what they’re thankful for this holiday season. There were 93 things that adults and children were thankful for. We took all those thanks and made them into a paper chain.
While hosting this activity as the Winnebago County Fairest of the Fair, one thing I noticed was that it was much easier for young children, rather than adults, to recall what they’re thankful for. This could be because young children get to make fun, holiday crafts during the school year that stay what they’re grateful for.
As I went through each of the 93 chain links individually, I took note of those that were the most common and/or my favorite things people are thankful for..
1. Family
2. Mom/Dad
3. My Children/Grandchildren
These three bullet points could be categorized all together as “family”, but I choose to keep them separate to show the top three things we’re thankful for. To me, it came as no surprise that we’re thankful for those who we surround ourselves with daily. They consistently support us throughout lows and highs. For young children, their parents serve as immediate role models, too.
4. Friends
Many individuals who are thankful for their friends were slightly older, around 10 years and older. It’s interesting because while young adults are most likely still thankful for their family, their friends are starting to become more of an influence in their lives. Our age, changing priorities, and growing values have a large effect on what we’re thankful for.
5. Animals (dogs, cows, horses, etc.)
6. Being healthy
7. School
I was slightly surprised to find that “being healthy” and “school” were common items that individuals are thankful for. Unlike “animals”, those two items are not something I would typically think of. Much of my school years felt very long, strict, and demanding. Being fairly healthy over my lifetime, I don’t think about my health on a daily-bases. Noting that, our experiences play a huge part in what we can easily recall as things we’re thankful for. Looking at those two again, I am very grateful to have attended school to gain so much knowledge and that my health is good.
8. Snow
I love snow, so number eight was my favorite. If you don’t like snow, I challenge you to take a step back and look at it from a different perspective. Look at how it glistens when undisturbed, listen to how it crunches every time you take a step, feel how fluffy and light it is, smell how fresh it can make the air. Most often we associate snow with increasing our clothing layers to accommodate the colder temperature, having to get up earlier to clean it off the car, and frozen water troughs (if you’re a farmer). Disassociating those negative feelings from the snow itself will help you enjoy the snow (and winter) a little more, trust me.
9. People who have my back
This was the final item on the list. I never would have thought of this as something I’m thankful for; however, it’s so important to have that great support system to keep you going. People who have your back could be your family, friends, and even kind strangers you come across in your community.
Now that you know what the Omro Community is thankful for, what are you thankful for? Is it similar to this list above?
I haven’t taken the opportunity to write many blogs about my experiences as the Winnebago County Fairest of the Fair; however, I hope you’ve taken the last couple of minutes to think about what you’re grateful for, thankful for, and blessed to have. Remember to continue those reflections in your day-to-day activities, it might just help you lift your spirits! Happy holidays to all my readers!
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